The Dodge Momentum Index increased a scant 0.3 percent in November, compared to October, but is up 18 percent on a yearly basis.

The Dodge Momentum Index jumped 18 percent higher in November on a year-over-year basis, suggesting construction activity should continue to strengthen in 2017, Dodge Data and Analytics said.

Commercial planning is now 35 percent above last year, while institutional is 2 percent lower compared to November 2015.

Month-over-month, the DMI climbed just 0.3 percent to 133.2, up from 132.7 in October, but has risen in in 10 of the last 12 months.

The DMI is a monthly measure of the first, or initial, report of nonresidential building projects in planning. These reports typically lead actual construction spending by a full year.

Dodge Data said the 0.3 percent gain was due in large part to a 4.2 percent rise in the commercial building component. On the downside, the institutional component dropped 5.2 percent for the month.

In November, seven projects entered planning, each with a value that exceeded $100 million. In the commercial sector, the leading projects were a $400 million office building in Chicago, Ill., and a $180 million expansion and renovation of a hotel in New York City. The leading institutional projects were a $155 million hospital in Rochester, N.Y., and a $100 million hospital and research lab in Bethesda, Md.